When leaving the station in response to a call, it is becoming increasingly risky for fire department and rescue vehicles to enter traffic. The primary reason for this is directly related to the fact that it is getting more difficult for drivers to hear sirens. In addition, there may be visual distractions for drivers as they approach the front of a station, i.e., new stores, new signs, etc.
Of particular concern are the ramifications which necessarily flow from the recent phenomenon of consumers demanding a "quieter ride." Automobile and truck manufacturers have made major advancements in this area in the last few years and, at the same time, they have steadily given consumers more control over the climate inside the drivers compartment. Now, drivers have every reason to drive with the windows up which means that cars and trucks have effectively become "moving soundproof rooms."
Furthermore, technological advancements in auto sound equipment, i.e., radios, tape players, and CD players, have also complicated the problem. Such equipment generates sound inside the drivers compartment, masking sounds outside the vehicle, and it also serves to distract the mind and promote daydreaming while driving. Naturally, all of this decreases the chance that a siren from a fire department or rescue vehicle will be heard as it leaves the station.
Still additional problems may include limitations on the drivers "field of sight" when approaching the station in a car or truck. Many stations are hidden from view by trees, shrubbery, signs, or even other buildings in some cases. Also, the station may be located so close to the roadway that drivers do not have time to react once they see a vehicle leaving the station.
In this connection, drivers are not surprised to see a vehicle in front of the station. Since they might not hear the siren, they must often actually see the lights before it registers that a fire department or rescue vehicle needs the right of way. For this purpose, the most effective solution to the problem is to simply use a traffic signal.
In this connection, a traffic signal can be utilized to control traffic when an emergency vehicle is leaving a station in response to calls. By controlling traffic, it is possible to substantially reduce or at least minimize the risk of potential accidents and avoid costly time delays. Typically, a traffic signal for this purpose has been a device that is "hard wired" which has proven to be undesirable for a number of reasons.
Most importantly, a hard wired traffic signal is extremely expensive to purchase and install. It presents not only a significant "up front" expense but also problems associated with hard wiring signal components together and to electrical sources. Still additionally, a hard wired traffic signal is inoperable in the event of any interruption in electrical power service.
As if this were not enough, hard wired traffic signals fail to place control of the signal where it is most needed, i.e., in the hands of the person driving the vehicle. Such signals are generally activated by a button mounted on a wall of the station, and this produces a problem since the driver is forced to communicate his timing with another person. In this connection, the driver is the only one who can quickly evaluate current conditions and accurately forecast his departure from the station.
If the driver has to tell another person to activate the traffic signal, there is room for error which, in this instance, could prove deadly. Quite simply, it is altogether possible that the traffic signal will be activated either too early or too late. For obvious reasons, there may actually be a greater danger in having the traffic signal than in simply relying upon the siren and lights on the vehicle.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the foregoing problems and achieving one or more of the resulting objects.